End of Year Reflection and Outlook for the New Year

As we draw the curtain on 2020, I’d like to share my end of year reflection and the outlook for the new year. So, welcome to my end of year reflection.

Why the Need for End of Year Reflection?

End of year reflection is useful for helping us to identify what worked, what didn’t, and what we can do better. It is an exercise that enables us to identify opportunities for improvement in every area of our life; career, marriage, ministry, business, etc.

Additionally, end of year reflection should jumpstart the outlook for a new year. I mean we’ve done our best in the outgoing year, and we should review to know what worked and what failed so that we can restrategize for the new year.

My End of Year Reflection

2020 has been unique in more ways than one, and it has been fraught with challenges least of which is not the pandemic.

This year, the majority of normal activities were disrupted both at national and international levels. There were lockdowns that prevented travels and social gatherings of any sort, and the playgrounds and parks were shut that even children couldn’t play. For the first time ever, I was forced into homeschooling without any prior notice or planning opportunity. And I’m sure it was the same for other parents too. Maintaining personal mental health became a challenge even for an introvert like me. I mean I’m comfortable in my own skin and I love spending time with me but there came a time when it was all just too much. And I thought I couldn’t take it anymore. Thank God for friends, work, and the church in no particular order.

Challenges of Isolation and Lockdown

Church is another story entirely, as my relocation at the start of the year meant joining a new place of worship. As a realistic person, I knew I couldn’t commit to making the 45 minutes or so commute to my former church. So, I promptly joined a new church after settling down in the new house only for the pandemic to hit. Being a somewhat reserved person, I was still taking my time meeting and knowing everyone, and boom, there was a pandemic. And there was a lockdown, and old church members thought I had moved on, and therefore didn’t bother to check. I didn’t check much either because I assumed everyone was busy with their lives.

All previously scheduled friend visits were cancelled in the name of caution and protecting everyone involved including myself.

I had to begin working from home, and homeschooling the children at the same time. Those days were tough, employees had to learn to tolerate and accept children’s background voices on Zoom calls. Thankfully my children are a bit older which means they can take instructions and be quiet. But it was not so for some of my colleagues who had babies same toddlers.

Background voices on zoom calls became the norm rather than the exception, and employers were understanding.

As if that was not enough, Black Lives Matter protests erupted in the wake of the George Floyd incident. There was unrest, pandemic, and isolation, what a terrible combo!

At a time, when I could no longer endure all the sad news, I started tuning out and turned more to God.

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Some of The Blessings of the Year 2020

As overwhelming and challenging as 2020 has been, it has also been a year of rare privileges.

For the first time since I started working, I had the privilege of spending every waking moment with my children. And helping them with their distance learning work, and settling their fights, and finding creative ways to keep them engaged.

My daughter gave her life to Christ during this period, and for this I am thankful.

The stay at home arrangement made it easy to schedule bible study with the children around my lunch break. But it also meant I was overwhelmed and brain fatigued by the end of the day. Consequently, the blog suffered, and I suffered burnout more than once as it was difficult to balance everything together.

I had to practice breathing and taking things one day at a time. Looking back now, I see that it was the sensible thing to do, although I struggled with this for a while. Feeling guilty and inadequate  for not showing up more often.

And then there were some emotional upheavals; the death of a loved one, the betrayal of a friend, etc. But thank God for his mercies that saw me through those dark times.

What I Learned During the Dark Times in 2020

What I learned during those times is that God is near to those who call upon him.

¹⁸ The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. Psalms 145:18 (ESV)

I was tempted to withdraw from God due to the pain and anguish, but His mercies kept me.

Thank God for His mercies.

We should not be afraid to draw nearer to God in times of trouble, pain or anguish because He says in his word;

¹⁵ and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” Psalms 50:15 (ESV)

I drew near and called upon God and He heard me and comforted me as a mother comforts her distressed children. 

There were some testimonies in year 2020.

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In this same year, I have testimonies of answered prayers as God opened mind-blowing doors of opportunities to me and my loved ones. All praise be to His holy name for his great faithfulness, mercy, and love.

This year, my family and I experienced spiritual growth through the challenges we faced.

And I have come to accept that I may not be present on all social media channels or else I will be spreading myself too thin.

Related Post: New Year’s Prayers

Looking Ahead to Next Year

I didn’t pay much attention to my email subscribers this year, but that is one area I intend to work on next year.

Additionally, I hope to improve my library of freebies and add more resources to it.

I will equally be paying more attention to my Youtube channel next year, and you can expect more videos from me. So make sure to subscribe and click on the notification bell to get notified of new videos when they are uploaded.

If time permits, I hope to write more guest posts on Christian Blogs.

And if Jesus comes before all these plans are executed, I hope you and I will be found worthy to reign with Christ in eternity. Shalom!

Welcome to my end of year reflection and outlook for the new year. Reflections are useful for helping us to identify what worked and what didn't and they help us feed forward to know what to do and what not to do. Did you have an end… Click To Tweet